ICE Fuel Economy

[Metallover]

I've been looking around and thinking about how to get better fuel economy. I think the best thing to do is to get a geo, but there should still be ways to boost the mpg of a gas hog.

There's a problem with the US efficiency requirements. This pisses me off. Many of the tiny diesel engines over in europe that get over 70mph should be used here in the US. The problem is that they don't meed US emissions standards. A little common sense would probably hint that a tiny 1.6l 3 cyllender engine would be less damaging to the envornment as a 5.9l diesel gas hog. Well, by volume, the little engine produces more pollution then the big one, so we let the big one dump crap into the air while the little green car stays in europe. Americans are frickin dumb not to get this. You think there's any way to fix this loophole?

Also, I've found some articles about fuel economy. One is an old opel claiming 376mpg. From looking at the pictures adn thinking, it seems that there is insulation keeping the engine heat in so the energy isn't wasted. Sounds smart. 70% of energy from an ICE is wasted. 40% as heat and 30% to cool the engine. Only about a quarter of the energy is converted to mechanical energy. We need to find a way to harness all the wasted heat energy.

I also looked at additives to the fuel. Acetone looks pretty cool. "Acetone improves the vaporization process and allows good burning to continue without lapses during the latter phase of second stage where cylinder volume is rapidly increasing. Acetone generates a very smooth and complete burn. No ping. No hesitation. No jerking. No stalling. No wasted fuel. An additive, like acetone, is simply something that is added to your gasoline to enhance the efficiency of your engine, fuel system and improve gas mileage and reduce pollution (emissions) as a result." I read somewhere someone had a V8 that got close to 100mpg and tons of HP due to acetone in the fuel. I remember seeing that you had to do something to the O2 sensor or something to make it work good.....

Well post up your thoughts about fuel economy. Post things you've done to increase fuel economy.